Etymologies

Perhaps ho(cus-pocus) + (bun)kum.

(American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition)

Blend of hocus-pocus and bunkum (Wiktionary)

Examples

He fought a long battle against what he called hokum, ideas with no basis, which gain spurious credibility by repetition (in the way that so many celebrities are celebrities for no other reason than that they are regarded as such by the media and society pop pundits).

So the integrity of the Commission, the veracity of all the testimony it heard, and the legitimacy of its recommendations were, in fact, widely dismissed as hokum because it was clear to "everyone who could read the facts" (or hokum, which is it?) that the whole thing was Jamie Gorelick's fault?

It is perceived as "hokum" because on one hand Edwards denounced 527's along with other special interest groups (as detailed above) but on the other refused to request that one operating on his behalf cease their advertising.

In this case, moving the funny-page content to a page formerly devoted to the news just might notch up the credulity paid to what would normally be considered standard WSH editorial right wing "hokum," to borrow a word from Li'l Abner's mammy, Pansy.

n. Flattery, insincerity; nonsense, bunk, blah. Any stage devise used purely to please the audience, any proven song, joke, or line sure to elicit the desired response. Proven but hackneyed or trite material used in the theatre. Cheap, sugary candy, shoddy souvenirs, any useless item such as is sold at carnival booths.